Immaculate blue skies, snow-covered slopes and queues at the ski lifts… These Christmas holidays in Sancy brought a smile to the faces of skiers, but also mountain professionals. At the Super-Besse station (Puy-de-Dôme), perched between 1,350 and 1,850 m above sea level, the first assessment at the beginning of January is worthy of the reference year of 2022. “In 15 days, we had an exceptional start to the season. We returned to the level of our best season three years ago. At the end of the Christmas holidays, we will exceed 2 million euros in revenue, which is considerable for us. We had up to 9,000 people on the slopes simultaneously! It’s not quite like the February holidays, but we’re getting closer,” says Vincent Gatignol, director of the Puydomoise resort with a smile.
With climate change, the Auvergne mid-mountain resort has nevertheless learned to diversify its leisure activities. In just a few years, Super-Besse has evolved into an all-season resort: summer tobogganing, a giant zip line, an aquatic base and even a roller coaster inaugurated last February… Everything is done to attract customers all year round, and for occupy in case of lack of snow. A new investment has just been voted in this direction. “We are working hard to diversify the Super-Besse resort,” recognizes Vincent Gatignol, who reveals a future extension of the Hermines fun and sports center in the heart of the resort.
After inaugurating this new establishment in 2019, the resort announces the doubling of its surface area for 2026. “These are essential indoor activities, because we need to offer year-round entertainment to our visitors. We are going to double the play area,” continues the director of Super-Besse. “There will be a laser game, a ninja course and a new climbing wall which will be added to all the activities already offered. We try to target 15-25 year olds. This is the age group that has a little trouble finding something to have fun outside of skiing. We always remain within a very family target. »
The amount of the investment carried by SEAML Pavin-Sancy, 2.6 million euros, will be “financed exclusively using money from the ski lifts”, specifies the director. Delivery scheduled for July 2026.
